£5.5b Battersea Property Redevelopment At Power Station Gets Go-Ahead
The Government’s Architecture and Urban Design Agency have backed the planning for the £5.5billion refit of Battersea Power Station.
The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) praised the application saying that the project architect, Rafael Vinoly’s design, was “intelligent and well-resolved”. Wandsworth Council is expected to make a decision on the plans in July 2010. These plans could see 3,7000 residences being built and could potentially generate 1,500 jobs.
Battersea Power Station
This project faced a long-term barrage of political opposition, but has long last got the green light. The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, rejected the Battersea plans as well as previous plans for a 1,000 ft high glass eco-tower, which was set to be London’s tallest building.
Real Estate Opportunities currently own the Battersea site, and are the third owners since 1983, when the Power Station was decommissioned. The latest design was revealed in June 2009 and has been favoured positively by the authorities. This is said to be due to the fact that the plans do not include any visible building from behind the Palace of Westminster.
Project Managers, Treasury Holdings, plan to totally restore this massive Grade II listed historic structure and renovate the interior space into 650,000 sq ft of offices. The plans further include an event space and a conference centre with a capacity for 2,000 seats. Apartments are planned to be built on the structure’s roof.
The exterior space is planned to include yet more office blocks, retail space, residential space, leisure and even a hospital.